budget

How many people do you know personally who will be hurt if the budget is not passed? FabGrandpa and I will be. For example, we are currently serving as volunteers at a federal campground in Alabama. We have been told that if the budget is not passed, the campground will be closed down and we will have to leave. While we were planning to leave anyway on Wednesday to head to Arizona to our summer seasonal jobs, those jobs in Arizona are with the National Park Service. So, we’ll be heading 2000 miles to Arizona for a job that may or may not be there when we get there.

My son, Seth, has been in the Air Force for 16 years or so. He is currently stationed at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. From what I understand, he will get paid on April 15th, but after that, if the federal budget is not passed by then and the government is not back up and running, he won’t be paid at the end of the month. He has a wife and four children. Although only three of his children live with him, that is still a lot of mouths to feed when you have no money coming in.

And what about all the senior citizens who receive Social Security as their only income. My mother, my father and mother in law, and countless other older people we know who may or may not receive their monthly payments while the government workers are furloughed.

Edited to add: Social Security will not be impacted by a government shutdown. Social Security benefits will still be paid. Sorry, I was misinformed when I wrote this.

And the biggest thing that irritates me about this whole situation is that the fat cat senators, congressmen, and the president will ALL still get paid if the government shuts down. Knowing that they will still get their pay tells me they have no incentive to make sure they come to a compromise before the country is shut down for lack of funding. And no, I don’t think we’re broke, I just think that once the yearly budget bill expires, there is no “law” or direction on where the money is to be appropriated, so nothing is spent until the budget is competed. They need to get on with it, and make America work for all of us.

We know lots of people in the same situation–our co-workers at the Grand Canyon, other people who are members of the military, one set of friends who are contractors for the Army Corp of Engineers. It is very scary to think about what will happen if this budget is not passed. We are keeping our fingers crossed.

The other day I wrote about some goals or things I want to accomplish over the winter. On the list of things I talked about was “eating down the pantry”. Just look at that pantry cupboard up there! It is ridiculous that we have that much stuff crammed in there for just two people! But wait! There’s more:

Ack! even more!

And more:

almost done!

don’t stop–there is more:

Can you believe that?

I knew it was time to stop and get a plan to do something about it when I was putting potato chips in the cabinet under the television!

no you didn't!!!

The plan now is to use up all this food before we leave Alabama in the spring. I am going to make myself get organized like I used to be in the winter of 2008. I will take an inventory before every grocery shopping trip, and make menus using things I already have. I KNOW I can do this.

Last night was the first night of the Personal Pantry Challenge. I dug around in the cupboard and found a packet of gluten free mushroom gravy mix, a can of mushrooms, a can of gluten free mushroom soup, and a can of sliced pears. I made some Mushroom Goulash and a pear salad to go with it. With some leftover rice from Sunday, it was an easy to prepare dinner. Here’s the recipe:

Gluten Free Mushroom Goulash

3/4 lb ground beef

1 onion, chopped

3-4 cloves garlic

1/2 cup frozen chopped bell pepper

6 large fresh mushrooms, chopped or sliced

1 small can mushrooms

1 packet gluten free mushroom gravy mix

1 can gluten free mushroom soup

salt and pepper to taste

cooked rice

Sautee the onions, garlic, and bell pepper until the onions are clear. Add the ground beef, and cook until it is browned. Add the can of mushrooms, the mushroom soup, and the packet of gravy mix. Cook until thickened. Serve over rice.

This one meal used up three cans of stuff from the pantry, one mix packet, and some mushrooms that were on the way to spoiling. And it was quite tasty. No picture because I forgot.

Tonight, I made chicken corn chowder. I found a package of gluten free corn chowder mix, a can of evaporated milk, and a can of chicken in the pantry. In the fridge, I had a pint of milk, three ears of corn, some leftover roasted chicken, and a half of an onion. Using them all together was another quick, easy meal, with leftovers for tomorrow.

Gluten Free Chicken Corn Chowder

1 package Mixes From The Heartland Gluten Free Corn Chowder Mix

1 large can evaporated milk

2 cans water

3 ears corn

2 large potatoes

1 can cooked chicken

1 onion

1/2 stick of butter

1 pint of milk

Scrape the corn off the cob. Peel the potatoes and dice them up. Place in a small pot, cover with water, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Melt the butter in a dutch oven, add chopped onion, sautee until the onion is clear. Add corn, chicken, evaporated milk, water, potatoes, and regular milk. If you have any leftover chicken handy, toss that in too. Cook over medium heat for 25 minutes.

This was a very good, thick soup, with plenty left over for another day. It used up 2 cans of stuff and a packaged mix from the pantry. Whooo Hooo! I’m on a roll!